The Libertines front man began dating the British beauty in 2005 but they split in 2007 after a series of bust-ups over his ongoing drug addiction.

A former pal of Doherty’s has now told the rocker he has various film footage of “private” moments between the couple, shot at her London home, and is demanding an undisclosed sum to hand over the tapes.

On Tuesday, Doherty was preparing to return to the U.K. from his apartment in Paris, France to collect the hush money and hand it over to the blackmailer in exchange for the footage, fearing it will be leaked to a tabloid newspaper if he refuses to pay.

In a message posted online, he writes, “Must get back to blighty (Britain) forthwith… Must find necessary funds to pay off … and retrieve all the footage he has of days at Kate’s house years ago. The shame of having to pay-off a friend is not as great as the shame of having the tabloids get hold of any private stuff. It’s the one thing remaining that retains me any worth in their smutty eyes…

“Terrible feeling. Curious too to know what he has after all these years of winding me up, baiting me with said ‘ticker-tape tapes’. Trust me, it’s the only way to get the matter dealt with… Pay the man and be done with it.”